28 Nov The Scent of a Thought

Ever had that one in a million idea which got you jumping out of your bed and wondering ‘Where did that come from?’ ? It’s amazing, isn’t it ? You don’t sleep, yet you don’t feel tired (until the next day). It’s the middle of the night but sleep is the last thing on your mind. All you want to do is wait for the sun to come up, go out in the biting cold, and take that shot of the morning fog on the streets at a spot which just flashed into your mind’s eye. Or make that sketch you always wanted to. Or write the song which suddenly landed in your semi-asleep state.

The best way to kill an idea is to sleep on it. Don’t sleep on any inspiring idea that happens in you, any time. Even if you can’t immediately reach the end of it, atleast do something to get started with it. Keep adding to it, bit by bit. Be it a travel plan, the exhibition you wanted to have, the shot you wanted to take of women in colorful clothing, the design you have been envisioning for the longest time, or even your PhD research analysis.

You nip it, and it’s gone. Pfff! (As Hercule Poirot would say)

Photo (c) Eugene Romanenko

Pick up your notepad, pick up your pen, pick up your camera, pick up yourself. Don’t sit on it. Don’t sleep on it. Do something, anything, just to keep you moving. Make a physical note of your idea, even if you can’t act on it immediately. Set a reminder. Set a date. Do something. But do it. Don’t postpone.

Pictures don’t click by themselves. Songs don’t get composed on their own. They come into existence because someone decided not to lie down on a couch, not to take the afternoon nap, not to sleep through the wee hours of the morning, not to just roll the idea in their head while trying to work at their workstation. They are brought into existence by people who got up and got going.

You act on it, and it will forever be sealed in your mind as an inspiration to you. You don’t act on it, and it’s one more reason why you will never act on it.